Curses as Chances
by MyPenNameIsThisThing
Summary: Evelith sacrificed her free will to the Lich King to save Nialas, whom she loves. Now, six years later, Eve is sent to kill Nialas, but her curiosity overwhelms orders. They go their separate ways, but fate never lets them stay apart for long. Sequel to "Chances as Curses."
1. Chapter 1

"… And HE said 'No more, you mangy dog!'" the Orc warrior bellowed. Everyone at the table erupted in laughter, including Eve. Eve's laughter was, by far, the most noticeable at the table, because it sounded so _hollow._ After the laughter died down, the Warrior smiled.

"We all know why we are here today," he said, gesturing towards Eve, who sat at the end of the table.

"Eve has returned to us, and she has done a marvelous job in aiding the Horde against the Alliance and the Scourge!" he said. Everyone clapped, a few cheered, but the warrior looked grave.

"But, at a price." he said gravely. Everyone at the table looked down, as if they were ashamed. Eve scowled at the Orc. Did he _really _have to go there?

"Why, Eve?" said a Warlock, who stared at her as if she was _obligated _to tell her tale. Eve smiled at him, and sat back in her chair.

"I remember becoming this just as clear as any of you remember being born." she said, her empty voice echoing throughout the dining hall. Some shivered, most didn't.

"But surely, you must remember why?" asked a Troll hunter. Eve liked this woman, she was the only one who seemed to want to know out of curiosity rather than spite. Eve shook her head.

"Alas, Zarbeka, I do not. If I did, I would tell you." she lied. Eve had a very vague memory of what happened that night. _"Please! I'll give you anything… Just save…"_ was all she remembered saying. That was six long years ago to this day. It was only two years ago that she broke away from The Lich King's obsessive grasp and allied herself to the Horde. There was also the memory of being stabbed in the stomach by some Night Elf. She couldn't see his face, it was blurred in the memory, she just remembered the pain of a dagger slipping into her stomach.

The party continued on, everyone dining except Eve, who had no real need to eat. Afterwards, she said her goodbye's and was left to wander the streets of Orgrimmar alone. She mounted her Death Charger and sped off. She was in the middle of another nostalgic moment when she heard a shrill scream. She stopped, and dropped off her Charger. There was a goblin lying next to her charger. Eve picked her up and put her to her feet.

"'oy, Death Knight, you could 'ave killed me." she said, coughing a little. '_Dirty.' _thought Eve. The goblin looked at her.

"Hey, I's been lookin' for you. Good thing I got ya' here. Got a message, yes I do." the goblin said. She rummaged in her bag and pulled out a crumpled, yellowing envelope. Eve tried to take the enveloped from the green, wrinkly hand, but the letter was snatched away from her before she could close her pale, white hands on it.

"Delivering' a letter ain't a pretty job, y'know…" Eve scowled and threw a silver coin on the ground. The goblin snatched it up, pushed the letter in her hand and scurried off. Eve tore open the wrinkled thing, and read it with indifference.

" _Dear Eve,_

_We hope this letter finds you unharmed and unopened. I have a job for you, a job that I cannot fail again. You seem to be just the right person…'_

The letter went on to tell her that she had to kill a valued member of the Alliance. A general, or something like that. They gave the exact whereabouts, and his background. _'Nialas. Where have I heard that name before?' _she thought. Something stirred in her memory, but she ignored this. Probably just some acquaintance. Before she could mount again, someone called her name. She turned around, and found that it was Akaii that called her name. Akaii was a priest who had taken interest in her, and Eve found that she, too, had been feeling something for him. Well, anything that wasn't hatred was good.

He trotted up to her, and embraced her. She settled into the hug with a small smile on her face. He was _warm. _Warmth was something Eve coveted these days, since all she could really feel was cold.

"What did that Goblin want?" he murmured into her ear. Eve looked up at him and shrugged. He kissed her softly, and she gave him the letter. He read it, his brow creasing in a concerned frown.

"This should be easy, I'll only be gone for a week at most." she said, slipping her hand into his. He squeezed her hand.

"I still don't like you doing things for them, it gets a lot of people in trouble. So many things could go wrong, Eve…" he voiced his concerns, looking up at the moon.

"Are you leaving tonight?" he looked back at her, running a thumb across her cheek. Eve nodded.

"Yes. Best get this done now instead of later. I expect they'll be expecting me though, since two have fallen before me." Eve said this, not worrying. She was _powerful_, else they wouldn't send her. Aka pulled her into another hug and kissed the top of her head.

"Be careful. If you're not back within two weeks, I'm coming after you."

She mounted her Death Charger and sped off past the entrance of Org. She caught the zeppelin to Tirisfal Glades just in time, and ignored the jeers she got by the goblins of the zeppelin. They were particularly malevolent creatures, who took pleasure in making fun of passengers.

The ride was smooth, no thanks to the goblins, who had to be threatened with their life before they shut up. As she jumped off the zeppelin, she heard the relieved sighs of the goblins, who _hated _having Death Knights onboard. Evelith rode southward, towards the place mentioned in the letter. On the way, she met a lone Draenei Shaman. At first, the Shaman attempted to run from her, but Eve used Death Grip to bring him close to her, and his face flashed with anger, fear, and then surprise.

"Eve?" he asked. Eve paused, her sword raised in the air, ready to deliver a blow. _'How does he know me?' _she wracked her brain for answers, but it gave her none. She sheathed her sword on her back and grabbed him by the collar of his blue robes. She pulled him close to her.

"Who the hell are you? How do you know my name?" she hissed, staring him down. He shivered, and looked up at her.

"My name is Dael, and I worked for Nialas' father six and a half years ago." he whispered shakily. Eve threw him to the ground and kicked him on the stomach. How _dare _he tell her such lies. He yelled out and clutched his stomach, which was probably now nursing a flowering bruise.

"You were never this cruel Eve, never." he said, between coughs. He retched, and Eve stepped back, disgusted. Eve kicked him over so that he lay on his back.

"Do you want to know cruel, Dael? Do you really want to know cruel?" she yelled. He shivered harder and shook his head. Eve looked down on him, getting some sick pleasure in his pain."Cruel, Shaman, is not knowing who you are, and being plagued by the guilt of things you don't remember doing!" she yelled at him. Her voice echoed through the clean night air. There was silence after she yelled, and Dael looked up at her from the ground, looking at her with pity in his eyes.

"Evelith, one day, you asked me what love was. I can see now that you have lost it all." he whispered, a small tear running down the side of his face. Eve laughed at him, and cast a curse on him. Dael screamed and clutched his chest."It will not kill you, but you will be in more pain than you have ever been for days. If I see you again, then I will not be as merciful." she said, kicking him as she walked past. She mounted her Death Charger again, and left his screams behind as she rode south.

The ride south took half the night, due to the quick pace she set for her Death Charger, who was more than happy to oblige her wishes. It had been growing steadily cooler as she rode, and by the time she reached the wrought iron gates of her destination, she could see her breath. She dismounted, and silently killed the two human guards that stood, unawares, in the front of the gate. She kicked the gate open, and to her dismay, someone rose the alarm. She cursed under her breath and summoned her ghoul, face ripper, who crawled out of the ground with a "nyegh!"

There were many guards that came running at her that time, maybe five or six, and Eve skillfully got rid of them all. Blood dripped off her armor, and she smiled. She _loved _carnage. Wiping the blood from her cheek, she stood in the middle of a circle of frightened guards.

"Where is Nialas! Come out, coward!" she yelled. She used Death Grip on one of the guards around her, and they all rushed forward. Her ghoul took care of three, and she took care of the rest. Their battered bodies lay on the ground, all in different states of destruction. Eve remembered something, and cursed herself. Nialas was a _rogue. _She looked around, tuning her ears into the silence around her. There was a sputter from one of the guards, who was still alive. Evelith brought her foot down on his throat, and the sound stopped.

Her ghoul heard him seconds before she did, and as she whipped around, she was blinded by some sort of powder that was thrown in her eyes, and pushed to the ground. She squinted up and rubbed her stinging eyes vigorously. She heard her ghoul valiantly fighting him off a few feet away, but soon after heard the sounds of him breaking in half. By that time, Eve's vision had returned slightly, and she stood. Nialas stood, as well, wiping the grime off of his dagger. He stared her down, readying his dagger. Eve twirled the runed sword in her hand, staring right back at him.

The cold wind stung her face, and her eyes were still watering, but she stood her ground.

"You are Nialas?" she asked, breaking the silence first. The rogue nodded.

"Who are _you_?" asked Nialas, flicking more ghoulish dirt from his dagger. Eve stood, silent, contemplating whether or not she would tell him. What would be the point, after all?

"Evelith." She had decided, after all, to tell him. Nialas paled and gaped at her.

"You did all of this?" He asked, gesturing around them. His hands were trembling a little. She stood, silent. He turned back to her, rage coloring his face.

"You should have just let me die. You've turned into a monster." he said in a hoarse whisper. Eve ignored his confusing comment and ran at him, brandishing her sword. Before she could bring it down, Nialas dodged it. Eve tried to hit Nialas again and again, but he insisted on dodging her blows instead of returning them. After a few minutes of the ridiculousness, Eve used the flat side of her broadsword to smack him down.

Nialas threw his weapons up weakly, and instead of seizing the opportunity to rend him in two, she knocked his daggers out of his hands. One went spinning away from him, while the other landed at his foot. Eve was not the type to take an easy kill, so she kicked the remaining dagger away and sheathed her sword.

"This will be a fair fight, since you are obviously incapable of anything but playing around." she said. Eve threw a punch at him, which hit him squarely in the jaw, sending him sprawling to the ground. He did not fight back, just looked up at her. Eve felt a pang in her chest. It was something between pity and sorrow, but she pushed it back and kicked him in the side. He rolled over twice and landed on his back again, looking up at her. She couldn't explain the emotion that was welling up inside her. It was giving her a splitting headache.

"Fight me! Get up! You pathetic piece of scum, get _up!_" she kicked him again, this time in the hip. There was a satisfying _pop_ and Nialas sucked air in through his teeth and clutched his hip. Eve dropped down, seized him by the collar of his shirt and slammed him into the ground.

"Why won't you fight me! Why!" she screamed in his face. Nialas winced, blood leaking from the split lip she had given him moments before. He looked up into her hellish eyes.

"Please, Eve, just let me explain. I knew you, I knew you once." He murmured. He was really hurting. Eve frowned. _'Should I do my job, or find out what I was?' _she contemplated, looking down at him. Curiosity won over, and she dropped him.

"You will tell me everything you know… knew about me." she demanded, looking around her. She didn't want any more surprises. Nialas stood up, shakily, and began to stumble towards the house. Eve followed him, watching his every move. He lead her into the house, and motioned to a worn table. She leaned against the wall nearby, refusing to sit down. Every instinct was screaming to get out of there, to ignore this half-wit rogue and end his life. Curiosity, however, had a stronger hold.

"Hands on the table." She commanded. He gently laid his hands on the table. He opened his mouth to speak, but Eve cut him off.

"Everything. From the beginning. They very second you met me until I left."

"Oka-"

"If you lie, I will kill you." she threatened. Not that she would actually _know _if he was lying. Hell, he could tell her that she was once a mountain troll who saved an entire village full of pink children by singing lullabies to an orange frog and she wouldn't know he was lying. Nialas nodded.

"I will not lie to you. I promise." he said. Eve scowled. She didn't want his promises.

Eve listened to his story, which at times, seemed completely absurd. She did not interrupt him, even when she thought she might launch across the table and strangle him.

"Laying on the floor next to the body of my dead father and my crying mother was... Awful. I knew I was going to die, and I thought that you had abandoned me." he said, looking sad. Eve was silent. Nialas continued.

"I had a dream… before I… woke up. Someone was holding my spirit, I couldn't tell who it was. You were crying. I assumed it was... a warlock, that you traded your life for mine. I had no idea..." he sat back, looking down at his hands. He was twiddling his thumbs in some bizarre pattern. Eve remained silent, looking at the ceiling. Was this _really _what she was like before… before The Lich King cast his spell and ruined everything?

"You say you know me?" she asked. Nialas nodded. Eve thought for a second. _'What's something that only he would know, then? Something that nobody else has seen? My scar? No, Aka has seen that. But who would he tell? How would Nialas know?' _Eve thought about it for a quick second, then posed her question."Do I have a scar on my body?" she asked. Nialas smiled, and nodded.

"Yes, you do."

"Where is it, then?" she asked, putting her hands on the table as well. Nialas stood shakily, then walked over to her. Eve frowned at him, looking up at his pained face. She had one hand on a dagger that rested at her hip, even though he was empty handed and weaponless.

"How did I get it? Surely, I would have told you _that _when you knew me." she said. She thought she had poked a hole in his logic, but he only laughed at her.

"I gave it to you. I hated you once, you know. I thought that you were the lowliest scum on the face of the earth, so I tried to kill you."

He laughed. _'What's so funny? He is mad in the head.' _she thought. Still, it pieced together nicely in her head. It all seemed to check out.

"I haven't touched the room since… since that day. Nobody has. Maybe that would… jog your memory?" he pointed up stairs, where there was nothing but darkness. Eve didn't wait for his permission, she jogged up the stairs. It seemed like one big Deja vous, going up those stairs. _'Maybe he was right, maybe this isn't just one big lie.'_ she wondered. She past the first room, the second room, and then went into the third room on the left. She pushed open the door, and gasped.

There was a thin layer of dust on everything. There were cobwebs in the corner, and the bed was still messy. The ground had bloodstains on it, probably from when Nialas had supposedly gotten stabbed, then attacked his own father with the blood-coated blade. The bureau was wide open, and Eve walked over to it, leaving footprints in the dust like it were snow. She opened it, and in the bottom of it were a pair of dusty, leather gloves. Shaking, she picked them up gingerly. She turned them inside out, and on the inside of one of the fingers, her name was etched. She gasped and dropped them as if they were hot coals.

She turned around, and Nialas was there, silently watching her as she pieced everything together."I am this… because you were… dying. I had to… save you?" she asked, thinking. Nialas nodded, and put a hand on her shoulder. Eve shrugged it off and turned to face him.

"Do you still love me?" she asked tentatively. Nialas nodded.

"Yes, I do."

"Was everyone out there one of your friends?"

"Yes, they were all very close friends." With this, Eve scowled.

"I killed every single one of them, Nialas." She spit his name. His eyes misted, he backed away from her. She stepped closer.

"It wasn't a painless death, you know. I made sure it hurt, and I always make sure it hurts. Is that the woman you love?" Her voice was bitter, angry. Nialas looked out of the dusty window, where all his friends lay, dead. He then looked back at her.

Nialas looked out of the window, and his heart wrenched. Yes, those were all very close friends of his. Their loss was painful, but it paled in comparison of what the loss of Eve put him through. He looked back at Eve, and looked in her eyes. All of the compassion that she once held for everything around her was burnt out, and all because of _him. _Nialas was lucky to be alive, and he knew that. If it weren't for the fact that Eve had always been curious, he would probably be laying in his own pool of blood, gutted by Eve or her disgusting ghoul. She was powerful, much more powerful than she had ever been in the past.

It had been years, and he had been waiting for all of those years. He hadn't gone looking once because he knew that he would not be able to find her... yet she haunted every dream and everyday of his life. There was not a single day that he would not think about her. Her eyes, which used to be emerald green and happy, were now an icy blue and full of rage.

Nialas shifted his feet, uncomfortable. He had thought… that it would be different. That maybe she would… remember him? He didn't know what he wanted. He just wished that everything were simple, like it was in the days when Eve was… Eve. He would much rather be dead than face this new reality. He looked back at her unforgiving eyes. So much changed about her. The way she carried herself, the way she looked at people. Even her _skin. _It was so white, like she was a ghost. _'Maybe she is a ghost, and this is all a lie…'_ Nialas reached out and caressed her cheek. He flinched. She was _cold, _but real.

Eve felt like she had received a shock when he touched her face. He felt so familiar. She was offended when he flinched, was there something _wrong _with the way that she was? She leaned in and touched his face, too. Compared to his pale, blue skin, she was as white as a ghost. Later, she would regret her next actions. She wrapped her arms around him, but all she could feel was the cold steel of her armor pressing against her skin.

. "_I want to hear _you _beg, Eve…"_

"_How will you get down the stairs?"_

"_I'll roll, Nialas…"_

"_What is it like to be in love?"_

Eve screamed as she surfaced from all of the memories. Nialas was clinging tightly to her, and as she rocketed back to reality, she shoved him away. Eve felt real emotion for the first time in a long time. Guilt, something that she was not accustomed to, seized her for the first time since she could remember. Something insider her snapped, and she gripped the hilt of her dagger and pressed it against Nialas' neck.

"I am _not_ sorry I hurt all of those people. I will never regret anything I've done, especially no-"

Eve heard a distant scream, and scowled. She ran to the window, and saw there was a Human woman standing in the yard, looking at the massive amounts of bodies that littered the front lawn.

Eve shook his hands off and opened the window. The woman spotted her, and screamed.

Preparing herself for a fight, Eve jumped from the window and landed with a thud. Suddenly, a carriage rumbled into the yard, followed by at least twenty or so guards. Eve cursed and used one of the dead bodies to raise her ghoul. There was more wind than earlier, and it was whipping her hair about her. Eve knew that to everyone else, she looked like the very picture of Death. Dark hair, shining armor, and blood spattered all over her. The ghoul rose from the ground with a cry, and the guards immediately sprinted into action. They were all _over _the place. Arrows rained down on Eve, all of which bounced off her armor. The guards that ran towards her were met with a most gruesome fate, except for one rogue guard, who managed to sneak up behind her and wedge a rather sharp dagger in her right shoulder. It was the last thing that he did though, he soon found himself without a head.

Eve ripped the dagger out and threw it at random, and it hit someone in some vital place, she knew, because a scream soon followed. An axe connected with her chest and though her armor took most of the damage, she felt a small wound open up near her collarbones. Eve realized that she would _not _live through this ordeal without any help. She heard the dying cries of her ghoul, and raised another one with the dead bodies surrounding her. The ghoul was soon dead again, and Eve didn't have any Runic power with which to raise another. She was suddenly knocked to the ground by one of the guards, and many hands were holding her down. She screamed and struggled, but there were just too many of them. She spit obscenities at them, which she was sure that they couldn't understand.

After someone had bound her hands, they wrenched her up. The last thing she saw before they knocked her out cold was Nialas hobbling from the house.


	2. Chapter 2

[Hey kids. Sorry for the, uh, two year absence. I'm changing the story, I'm going to spend this creative streak on writing this story, but I'm going to be changing a lot. The first story may also get a make-over, we'll see. Review/PM me, I'd love to chat. Enjoy.]

Nialas ran a hand over his aching hip. He was healing quickly, he was lucky that Eve didn't do more to him. In all honesty, he expected to die that night. Every time he closed his tired eyes, the flash of her dagger at his neck forced him awake again. He returned his attention to the piece of paper in front of him. They had her in captivity, and no amount of torture was getting any answers from the seasoned warrior. Nialas could have told them this was going to happen before he signed the order to have her tortured for information. He tossed the paper into the fire. No matter how high he stoked the flame, he could not get warm. He knew what she was waiting for, but he didn't want to give her that satisfaction.

The fact was that she single-handedly killed almost everyone on his land, and then some. It took twenty strong warriors to subdue this tiny Death Knight. She was dangerous, and the people were crying for her death.

The _other_ fact was that he still felt something for her. He knew that he was being ridiculous, that his father would have told him to stifle his petty emotions and do the right thing. He should have her put to death. The issue for it was sitting in front of him, waiting for his signature. He could not pick up the quill and sign it. He had to do something first.

Pushing himself out of his chair, he glanced in the mirror before heading out. His face was full of bruises almost finished healing, but he looked better than the day after Eve had throttled him within an inch of his life. He had to go see her, even if it was for the last time before he personally signed a warrant for her death.

As Nialas dismounted, he was met by one of his second in commands. The warrior shook his hand, and Nialas could sense the exhaustion in his eyes. Eve was wearing his crew down, one by one. Nialas nodded and headed inside, down to the basement of the looming stone tower in front of him. Although torches lit the way, he still had to be careful not to slip on a missing stone. It would be ironic, he thought, if he died in so mundane a way after nearly meeting death a week earlier.

He stopped in his tracks as he heard a blood curdling scream that trailed into maniacal laughter. Immediately, he got goose bumps and, for a split second, considered turning around and merely signing the death warrant.

Two guards stood outside of the door, and Nialas realized he was holding his breath as he walked into the door held open for him. The torturer was standing at his station, cleaning the jagged, twisted tool he had just used on the Knight. She was chained at wrists and ankles, slumped against the cold stone wall.

"A moment, please." The paladin nodded. She was the only one who didn't look exhausted, and as she and the two guards left their stations, Nialas finally took a look at Eve. There was fresh blood on the ground, and by all appearances she seemed to be out cold. Nialas grabbed a nearby bucket of water and threw it on her. The Death Knight jolted back to consciousness and locked her burning eyes onto him.

"So you haven't said a word in a week's time? That's impressive." He grabbed a chair and sat far enough away that she couldn't get to him. She cracked a smile and laughed. Nialas' goosebumps returned, and he leaned forward.

"I've been waiting for you, you know." Her voice was hoarse. Nialas kept his eyes locked with hers, silently waiting for an explanation. She pushed her hair out of her face, and sat back. Her body was covered with burns,bruises and cuts. Nialas considered feeling bad briefly, but remembered the carnage that she had wrought.

"I want you to tell me everything. You held back that night." Eve rasped, her ice-blue eyes sending a chill down his spine that lit a fire in his chest. He had been expecting curses, death threats, attempts at his life. Her voice didn't even _quiver_, even though she had been going through atrocities for a week. Nialas knew exactly what they had been doing to try and get her to talk. None of it was pretty.

"Evelith, you... aren't who I thought you were. I thought after all these years that you would come back. I tried to move on, but you haunted me then and you haunt me now. I can't do this anymore." He tried to look her in the eyes, but he couldn't.

"So you're going to kill me? Parade me out there like a show and have me murdered in front of all of the jeering people?" Her chains rattled, and Nialas looked up. She was standing now. He had to admit, without her armor on, she wasn't an imposing figure. With just a thick wool shirt on and leather breeches, she looked... well, just like she used to.

"Do me the favor of standing and looking me in the eye when you say it at least." Nialas, loathe to do anything else but beg that she remember who she was, obeyed her. He stepped closer to her, and looked down into her eyes. Instead of the malice, there was just... a blank stare. He took a deep breathe and let it out.

"I am going to have you publicly executed in two days time. Make your peace with this life." He whispered to her. Her expression didn't change.

She reached out and laced her fingers with his. Nialas couldn't help it, he squeezed her back. "I'm sorry." He whispered as he let go. Eve nodded.

"Me too." She said, before she brought the palm of her hand upwards sharply, knocking Nialas out cold.

When he awoke, Eve was clasping her weapon belt to her hip. He reached forward, but was stopped by the chains that bound him to the wall. The Death Knight ran a hand through her tangled hair without paying him any mind.

"If you could have escaped at any time, why didn't you just go?" He seethed. His jaw hurt, and he tasted blood. He was sure that he had nearly bitten his tongue off, but he knew it wasn't as bad as it felt. Eve wiped her dirty face off with a towel and shrugged.

"Like I said, I was waiting for you." She crouched down in front of him at eye level, and caressed his bruised jaw with her bare hand. Much to Nialas' surprise, she leaned in and pressed her cold lips to his. Nialas broke away from the kiss to find Eve smiling.

"I know I'll see you soon, Nialas. You can count on it." She stood and fastened her helmet onto her head. All Nialas could see was the cold glow of her eyes through the slits in the stained metal. He called her name as she reached the threshold of the door, and she paused briefly.

"Don't worry, you won't have to wait a week to get out." With that, she disappeared out of the doorway.

Nialas heard the screams, even through the thick stone walls.


	3. Chapter 3

[[You'll have to excuse the bad organization skills. I have no clue how to put in page breaks and it's fucking with me. Anyway, here's your chapter. Please R&R, I love that shit. xoxo]]

Eve could only hope that the pounding of her charger's hooves would eventually drive the thoughts and emotions bubbling up away, but as she sped back towards Orgrimmar, she knew that wasn't going to happen. Dirt and dried blood flecked her armor, and she looked the picture of pure fury. She didn't care. She was going to get some answers. There was no _way_ that her superiors didn't know who they were sending her to.

On the zeppelin, the goblins and other passengers stayed far away from her. Eve hated surprises. The whole mission had been a bust, and she was going to have to own up to it. She had gracefully murdered all of those people, and for what? The one person she was sent to kill... she left him in chains. That was sloppy, not something she was known for.

As the wind whipped through the zeppelin, she removed her helmet and ran a hand through her hair. What the _fuck_ was happening to her? She walked to the edge of the boat zep and watched the sea below her.

She was a death knight, there were no two ways about it. She needed to inflict pain and suffering upon others to keep herself sane. She'd seen what happens to others who had tried to "turn good." The Ebon Blade had to put them down after they became mindless killing machines. Eve did not want to become that.

She met another Blade member after the battle at Light's Hope chapel after she broke away from Arthas. He had told her that it was useless to try and remember her past, that she was better off without it. Now she stood there, wracking her mind, trying to tear apart her identity just to see if there was anything still left of her old life. She didn't even _know_ her old life, except for bits and pieces that flashed behind her eyelids when she closed them.

The water eventually gave away to the sandy, dry land of the central Eastern Kingdom. As the zep noisily docked, Eve heard the whicker of terrified horses as they shied away from her undead presence. Ignoring this common reaction, she summoned her own death charger and stormed into Orgrimmar.

Before seeing her superiors, she decided she would bathe. She was covered in cuts and bruises, but she would look as presentable as possible. The living liked that sort of thing. She rented a room at a nearby inn, and trudged up the stairs. Eve took a good long time in cleaning her armor, taking care to get into all of the cracks and crevices. This action calmed her, and when she was done, she realized that she would have to shell out a lot of money just to repair the dents and cracks she had suffered on this journey.

She bathed, taking care to clean out the more serious wounds. She had a lurking suspicion that she hadn't been slain and then raised as Arthas' undead warrior. She speculated that she had been corrupted by a necromancer. Unlike some other Death Knights, she didn't hopelessly rot. She'd seen arms come off during combat. Being undead had its... perks.

After dropping her armor off to be repaired, she mounted her charger and made her way through Org. She was going to get some answers, chain of command be damned. Storming through the military building, bloody quest paper in hand had a certain effect on people. She was here for Deluril, the commander who had issued this quest just for her.

She stormed into the room where he was poring over some map or the other. He barely had time to look up before Eve slammed the paper down in front of him. Her rage returned full force, and she had to bite her tongue to stop from going berserk.

"Tell me what you knew of this before you sent me." She managed to say, just above a whisper. Commander Deluril looked her up and down, inventorying her wounds.

"Evelith. I did not expect to see you so soon." He said, calmly. This just infuriated her. She wanted _answers,_ for fuck's sake. He picked the letter up and carefully examined it.

"Did you complete the mission?" He asked, tossing the paper into the fire. The image of Nialas' face crumpled up and burned. Eve scowled.

"No. There were some unforseen complications. They were expecting me, for one. Two, they managed to subdue and capture me, I was tortured for a week. I did not talk, I escaped instead." Admitting this was hard, but it was the truth. Eve, whether through her innate sadism or ambition, was always striving for more. More power, more authority, more missions.

She maneuvered herself so that she was facing him. He averted his gaze, and Eve could sense that he was hiding something.

"Tell me what you knew about this before you sent me in there. Tell me everything." It wasn't a question, it was a demand. Deluril sighed and returned to his maps. He shuffled them together, rolled them up, and put them away in a nearby bookshelf.

"Very well, if that's what you wish. knew you before you were... undead. You were a rogue under my command, and I foolishly sent you out on a mission I knew you weren't prepared for. Yet, you seemed so eager to prove yourself, even though you were already quite accomplished." He refused to look at her, as though he felt some sort of guilt. Eve frowned. Guilt was for the weak.

"We sent you out on this mission, and when you didn't return, we assumed the worst. We sent some spies, and... well, we didn't know what was going on, but from our point of view you looked like a deserter. It was reported that you were, ah, fraternizing with the enemy in a way that we found quite unforgivable." If Eve had the capacity to be embarrassed, she would have blushed. It was clear in his tone what he was implying. Presently, however, she was unfazed by his comment.

"We heard reports of you appearing in several Horde territories, and then you seemed to disappear. When you turned up after the battle at Light's Hope... I was not surprised." The commander turned back to the table, and sat back down at his desk. In front of him were several letters that he was in the middle of writing. He seemed to be done with the conversation, but Eve needed more.

"Why did you send me after Nialas then? What was the point? Why couldn't you send anyone else?" She didn't know if she even wanted to know the answer to this question.

"Oh, I'm not entirely sure. Loose ends, you know? Curiosity. The job will be done." His tone told her he had lost interest in the conversation. Eve turned to go, but clearly Deluril was not entirely finished.

"Before you go, Evelith, this just came in for you. A mission, or something." He tossed a letter her way, and she caught it. Briefly, she expected him to ask for a tip. Eve left without a salute.

When she was back in her rented room, she tore the letter open. In so many words, it told her exactly what Deluril had. Her presence was "requested" in Northrend, where she would be placed in a position of command. In a fit of rage, she grabbed the nightstand and threw it at the wall. Northrend! She threw the letter into the fire and seriously considered going on a rampage.

After she had calmed down a bit, Eve carefully righted the nightstand and put it back in its place. She was losing it. She couldn't control the anger that was welling up inside of her. She hoped she wasn't turning into one of those Death Knights that had to be put down. No, she wouldn't allow it.

She went to retrieve her armor, and instead of waiting until her arrival date, she boarded the necessary zeps and sped on her way. As the icy wind whipped her face, Eve tried to think of the better parts of this trip. '_The pay. The pay will be good._'

…

Nialas refused, for the third time, the attentions of a healer. There were people who had more serious wounds than a badly bruised jaw. He, again, heard Eve's voice in his head. _'I made sure it hurt. I always make sure it hurts...' _

Nine good people had died, and many more had been wounded. There were many accounts of what had happened that day, but there was one general consensus: she had been unstoppable. Not arrow nor magefire could slow her down, she was a cold-blooded killer without any mercy or compassion.

Later that night, after he offered deep condolences to the families of the lost and cleaned up what could be cleaned up, he paced back and forth in his office. Nialas' mind was running around in circles. He just didn't know what to do. He just survived another assassination attempt, but this it left him with more than just physical wounds.

Every waking moment of every day, he saw something that reminded him of his past with her. The house was steeped in memories he only associated with Eve. It was unhealthy and, frankly, it was driving him mad. Nialas had thought that eventually the pain would go away, and that one day he would move on and forget about her. When she showed up, the scab was ripped wide open and he was feeling everything like he did six years ago.

Nialas sat down in front of his desk, cradling his head in his hands. He had seen atrocity after atrocity, and one woman had brought him low? He needed an escape, somehow he had to get out, to get away! He needed somewhere new, somewhere where everything didn't remind him of Eve. He was obsessed.

Frantically, Nialas pulled out a piece of parchment and began to write. He relieved himself of command, placing one of his most trusted colleagues in his spot. He couldn't follow in his father's footsteps anymore, he had to go.

As Nialas shoved his things into a bag, he remembered an offer that a very influential someone had made to him on a visit to Dalaran once. '_Yes, that's what I'll do. I'll go to Northrend and join the forces there. I'm going to murder every undead scum I see._' He thought. There, he would forget about Eve. There, he could finally find some peace.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, sorry for the absence. Just moved into a new apartment with my girlfriend, it's been busy. Here's your chapter, kiddos.**

Would love a review/PM from one of you, just to know someone still reads this? xoxo.

* * *

The biting cold never bothered Eve. The wind could freeze the skin right off of her face, but it would never make her shiver. Then again, her group was made of mostly living beings who needed warmth for survival. She served as the leader for the four others who travelled with her. A human paladin, a night elf hunter, an orc rogue, and a human warrior. They all worked well together, even though the paladin made Eve a little nervous.

Eve had been in Northrend for almost a month, and it was incredibly boring. At most, her team was sent to destroy some scourge caravan or another. The most dangerous encounter had been with a Death Knight. Eve could remember feeling particularly vengeful when their weapons clashed. After she had sliced his head off, she proceeded to hang the body upside down from a rotting tree, just so she could make the message clear. Her group never objected to anything that she did, whether it was out of a mutual understanding or just plain caution.

Around a fire, the night before they set out back to regroup in the Valley of Echoes, Collins broke the normal meal-time silence as he chewed on a piece of jerky. His voice reminded her of a very whiny child, and it irritated her.

"What are we all looking forward to when we get back? I'd say my nice warm cot's been missing me..." He nodded, scooting closer to the fire. Eve picked blood out from under her nails. Nathassa, the paladin, perked up immediately. She had been trying to make small talk the whole mission, which most of the crew ignored.

"Food. Real food, I mean. Mutton, with some ale maybe." She licked her lips as she chewed on a piece of hard tack. Nobody blamed her for that. If animals in Icecrown even existed at all, they were corrupted, and definitely not worth eating. The companions continued their small talk, and Eve tuned them out.

"Evelith? What about you?" At the mention of her name, her head snapped up. Everyone was looking at her expectantly. Outside of orders, she had said all of three words to these people. Eve didn't know how to say _'I want to beat someone bloody and watch their blood soak the permafrost'_ without raising any eyebrows.

"Ah, I'm not sure... I will take watch." With that, she stood up and stalked away from the group. She didn't go far. This close to the Argent Vanguard, there wasn't much action. As she drifted away from the group, she could still hear the conversation, but it was her they were talking about.

"I think she's... nice... I mean, we've had worse." Eve snorted. She had never heard herself described as _nice,_ let alone from a paladin.

"She's frigid. She never sleeps, eats, or smiles. It's unnatural. The sooner I'm rid of her, the better." Collins declared. Eve rolled her eyes. She had the lurking suspicion that Collins was an asshole. He'd just confirmed it. Just so she could see him squirm, she skulked behind him in the dark. Reaching over his head, she plucked what was left of his jerky out of his hands.

"When I was part of the Scourge, they didn't permit us to sleep - not ever. It is a weakness that I don't need to succumb to. This means that you can spend all night twitching in your dreams while I take watch." Her hollow, undead voice made him jump and scramble away most ungracefully. She smiled eerily, to spite him.

"As for eating, I can. I choose to here and there." She took a bite of the jerky and chewed. It was rather good - probably something Collins had cured himself, as it was more flavorful than what the Argent Vanguard provided to it's warriors.

She could see that he was incredibly embarrassed. Eve hadn't taken any offense, but another commanding officer would have had him lashed for a comment like that. He had the right of it, anyway, she was quite... unnatural.

A far away sound snapped Eve's attention to their surroundings. Shit, it figured that something had crept up on them the second she wasn't paying attention. Internally, she admonished herself. This is what socialization got her - stalked. The last thing she wanted to deal with right now was a Vrykul Necrolord or something.

Nathassa quickly stomped out their fire, and as Eve's eyes adjusted to the dark around them, she saw nothing. She had the feeling of being watched, and as her companions quietly packed what little they had, she drew her runeblade. The hunter's pet growled low in his throat, and Xarlug the rogue faded to blend into the night. Not willing to risk the chance of an ambush, she gave the signal to move out.

Their trek back to base was longer than expected, especially because Eve refused to lead the group on the main road as she had been before. Despite this, the trained warriors never faltered in their step, only taking short breaks to replenish themselves before continuing on.

Around noon the next day, the group returned to the Argent Vanguard, tired and weary. Nothing had come of that feeling of being watched, and the group (Collins especially) suspected that Eve had done that as punishment for gossip. This had not really been her intention, but she was not going to tell them otherwise.

Her group dispersed, their mission completed. Eve promptly forgot all of their names, and handed in her report. The weather-worn human that snatched it from her hands only gave it a menial glance before sending her away. She had found nothing, as she expected.

Later on, after she had sparred with a training dummy, Eve took a stroll past the infirmary tents towards the main gate. She climbed up the stairs to the wall where the sentries stood watch for any stray scourge that came their way. They were all alert and waiting to signal. Some looked new and quite nervous. She didn't blame them.

Arthas was the type of enemy who kept you on your toes. No matter how many informants were on the inside, no matter how many of his chosen had defected, you never knew enough about The Lich King. An attack could come in two minutes, or two days. It was enough to make sane men lose sleep at night.

As she stood looking over Icecrown, she saw a pack of flying mounts heading towards the encampment. She didn't get a glance of the riders as they circled in to land, but she hoped they came with a challenging mission. These little scouting missions they were sending her on were starting to make her wonder if there was something better she could be doing.

* * *

Nialas felt sick to his stomach as his mount landed on the permafrost. As he slid from the saddle, he could only sigh in relief. He stamped his feet and rubbed his hands together. These were not the humid vales of his childhood, that was for sure.

Nialas stood the tallest amongst the humans around him, and it was glaringly obvious that he had no idea where to go next. Thankfully, someone he recognized waved him over. Nathassa's copper skin made her stand out amongst the white landscape around them, and Nialas was glad to see her face.

"Nialas! It's been too long!" She embraced him. Nialas welcomed the embrace, and returned it. As if she could read his mind, she mentioned getting him something to eat. He nodded, shouldering his singular bag full of extra gear and following her.

"So, what has the Argent Vanguard been up to lately?" He asked. Nathassa rolled her eyes plainly and cracked a smile.

"Nialas, I just went on this useless mission. Our leader was this Death Knight, Eve I think her name was, and she was just... Awkward. No social skills, you know? I have to admit, though, she was very... lethal." The name jolted Nialas, but he was sure that it was only a coincidence. He chuckled nonetheless.

"In that case, she sounds like an excellent leader." Nathassa rolled her eyes as they arrived to the food was a sour looking cook wielding a ladel like a weapon. He eyed both of them hesitantly before shelling out a bowl of stew for both of them. It was hot enough to burn the palm of Nialas' hands, so he added a bit of clean snow to the mix to cool it down.

He made quick work of the stew, which was much more delicious than he thought it would be. He was returning the bowl when Nathassa was called away for some duty or the other. Nialas waved as she trotted off.

There wasn't much to do, as he wasn't due to report in until the next morning. A camp fire had been made not too far from the cook's station, so he went to join some other soldiers that were sitting around it.

Some nodded as he joined them, but others either didn't realize he was there or ignored him, choosing to stare into the fire or off into the distance. Some of them had far-away looks in their eyes - as if they had seen too much and didn't want to cope with reality. Nialas understood.

When the darkness began to set in, and some people began to drift away to their tents for rest. Nialas chose to stay, and after a while he was the only one there. He was content to be alone, and the fire kept most of the cold away. _'I could get used to this...' _He thought. Sure, it was cold, but he no longer had to face the painful memories that home brought.

Saying goodbye to the people he had grown up with was hard. Some - who knew more about his troubled past than others - didn't ask why, out of respect. Both of his parents were dead, he had no wife or children, his work drove all of his friends away long ago... He had nothing to hold him there anymore. Perhaps one day he would return. For now, though, he was content being far, far away.

After a span, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up, and he had the distinct feeling of being watched. He sat up straight, breaking from his reverie. The crunch of footsteps in the snow made him shiver.

"Nialas. What in the world could you be doing here?" Her voice was colder than the icy air that filled his lungs. He stood, whipping around to face her. Her armor reflected the dying light of the fire, making her look alive for a change. His hands found the hilts of his daggers, and they rested there. He had no words for her, only raw anger and sorrow.

"Come now, we serve the same purpose here in Northrend. Relax." She held her hands palms up to show she held no weapons. Nialas slowly let his hands come to rest at his sides, fists clenched. He'd been wanting to rage at her for the calamity she had caused, and now was his chance.

"What you did -" He began, but Eve silenced him with a bitter laugh.

"What I _did_, Nialas, was obey an order. I'm sure you've slaughtered dozens of people. Those people had loved ones, too. Did you limp home and cry over them?" He couldn't tell if she was mocking him or asking him an honest question. He looked away. She was right.

Not knowing what to say back to her, he strode over to a pile of wood. After hefting up a few sturdy pieces in his arms, he came back to the fire and tossed the wood into the pit, wiping his hands off. A coal jumped up suddenly, landing on his palm and burning him. He jumped back, gasping and cradling his wound.

Eve did a curious thing then. She stepped forward, grabbing Nialas' wounded hand. She put a cold hand over the burn and spoke a few soft words. The pain vanished, replaced by a warm sensation, as if she were pouring warm oil over his hand.

When she stepped back, Nialas was surprised to find that his wound was completely healed. Stunned, he looked at Eve. At every turn, she surprised him. She sat down on one of the benches and began to remove her chest piece. Nialas sat himself on the same bench, watching her undo the various latches. He briefly worried that she'd be cold, but then remembered the cold probably didn't affect her.

"Eve... what happened to you?" Despite the fact that she had wiped out almost an entire town of people he knew, he couldn't help but ask. He had to know. She smirked, rolling her shoulders. Without her armor, he could see the various scars and bruises she had recently accumulated. On her shoulders were what looked like intricate runes, although he could not be sure in the flickering light.

Eve laid her weapon on her lap. It glowed blue as she rubbed the blood stains off with snow she gathered from the ground around her.

"I knew you were going to ask that. Again, might I add. I don't know what kind of answer you want to hear, Nialas, but I'll start from the beginning." She wiped the bloody snow off of the blade with the sleeve of her shirt.

"I remember waking up on Wild Shore, south of Booty Bay. I didn't remember how I got there, but I knew where I needed to go. See, I heard this voice in my head telling me I needed to go North. It felt right. I knew something was different though. I didn't feel hunger or pain like I used to, in fact I didn't even need to sleep, although out of habit I would. Then I discovered that I didn't need to breathe anymore, either. There's a story behind that, but I won't tell it now." She paused to remove her bracers, setting them next to her.

"I realized then that I was undead. There was no visible death wound on my body, and so I have to assume it was through corruption that I became the way I am. So I traveled as far as a gryphon would take me, stole a mount, and rode straight to the Eastern Plaguelands. There, I found Archeus: The Ebon Hold. The Lich King controlled my mind, Nialas. I didn't have a choice."

Nialas sat in silence as she finished her story. This was his fault.

"Do you remember anything at all?" As the words left his mouth, he saw Eve roll her eyes.

"Yes, sure. Snippets of things from before I was undead. Childhood, my parents, training as a rogue. Sometimes memories of the time we spent together, but not much. Not enough to care."

Although her words stung, Nialas didn't think that she had meant to be so blunt. That's simply how she was.

In the silence that followed, Nialas warred with himself. Here Eve was, answering all the important questions he had ever asked himself. She had even been kind to him, in her own way. Healing him was not something he'd expected.

Eve tucked her long, tar-black hair behind her ears. Nialas admired how well groomed she was. He had seen many undead who were... less well put together than she was. She sheathed her weapon and leaned it against the bench to her left. Nialas was curious about how she kept her skin from rotting away, but he decided not to ask.

"You have been placed on an assignment, Nialas. You leave tomorrow, along with two companions - myself and the Paladin Nathassa. Standard assassination mission." Eve collected her things and stood, buckling her sword so it hung vertically down her back.

"We leave at dawn. Nathassa has been informed of this. You are welcome to my tent, if you'd like. I think it'd be too late to set yours up now." Nialas stood, stamping warmth into his toes. Despite the blazing fire, he was still cold.

He followed the crunch of her steps in the snow to the tent. It was bigger than the other tents - clearly the tent of someone who had high rank. The young Night Elf was flabbergasted. She was ranked higher than him, from the looks of it. Eve opened the flap and led him inside. There was a cot and a small table with a few unfinished letters strewn across it's surface.

"Consider it yours. Goodnight, Nialas. Don't be late tomorrow." With that, she left. The flap to the tent fluttered in the frigid wind. The rogue buried himself under the thick blankets of the cot. Yeah, this definitely beat sleeping on the ground like the other soldiers would.

Despite the fact that he was exhausted, he couldn't sleep. He could only think in circles. Why had Eve been so kind to him? He felt himself beginning to forgive her despite what she had done.

Back when he was running missions - after Eve disappeared but before he got over her disappearance - he would kill ruthlessly. Sometimes even mindlessly. He would take lives in the same manner as one would butter toast in the morning. Never once did he lose sleep over it. Never once did he wonder if someone loved them, if someone was waiting impatiently for them to return home so they could plant a gentle kiss on their lovers' forehead. So in that way, he understood, and he began to forgive.

Finally, after his mind had run itself into a tizzy, Nialas drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Elsewhere, Eve stalked the boundaries of the camp. For whatever reason, she didn't feel the same disdain towards Nialas as she did other people. Last time they met in his homeland, he was expecting her to be someone she was not.

When he looked at her then, hope twinkling in his eyes and arms open ready to accept her, she had hated that. Now they were on the same page, finally. When he put his hands to his weapons earlier, she felt that he finally understood. This, in turn, made her despise him less.

Eve couldn't remember feeling protective over anyone. Yet, Nialas was a link to her past that she didn't want to disappear. That was as close to caring she could get, she thought. Eve silently resolved that she wouldn't let anything happen to him during their mission.


End file.
